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Cancer remains a major global health concern, often challenging traditional treatments. Natural compounds like fungal polysaccharides have gained attention for their immune-modulatory properties. This study evaluates the phytochemical properties of the n-hexane fraction of Trichaptum biforme and explores its immune-enhancing effects. The study involved isolating three sterol derivatives using column chromatography and purifying polysaccharides from T. biforme (TBP) through hot aqueous extraction. TBP content was quantified via the phenol‑sulfuric acid method, and antioxidant activity was assessed using DPPH and FRAP assays. Cytotoxicity of TBP on THP-1 cells and the impact on IL-1β and TNF-α secretion were evaluated through the XTT assay. Flow cytometry and ELISA assessed cytotoxic activity and IFN-γ secretion in NK cells. The compound 9, 11-Dehydroergosterol peroxide was identified for the first time in T. biforme. The total polysaccharide content was 78.18 ± 0.81 %. The TBP significantly increased IL-1β and TNF-α secretion from THP-1 cells at concentrations of 10 and 320 μg/mL (p < 0.01). Treatment of NK cells with the extract (320 μg/mL) and IL-2 (100 units/mL) significantly enhanced cytotoxic activity and IFN-γ secretion compared to the control group (p < 0.01). These findings suggest that TBP holds promise as a candidate for bolstering anticancer immune responses., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Objective: The present study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of Nigella sativa L. (N. sativa) extract on preventing the incidence of acute radiation dermatitis (ARD) in breast cancer patients., Methods: Sixty-two breast cancer patients undergoing radiotherapy (RT) were randomly assigned to receiveN. sativa 5% gel or placebo. Patients were instructed to apply the medications twice daily during RT period. The severity of ARD, the incidence of moist desquamation, worst experienced pain, and skin-related quality of life (SRQOL) scores were assessed weekly during RT., Results: Patients who were treated with the N. sativa gel developed ARD significantly less frequently compared to those who used the placebo (p < 0.05 for all weeks except week 2, p = 0.36). The incidence time of grade 2 and 3 of Radiation Therapy Oncology Group and the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (RTOG/EORTC) toxicity was prolonged significantly with N. sativa gel as compared to placebo (35 vs. 29 days, p = 0.00 and 42 vs. 40 days, p = 0.01, respectively). Furthermore, the occurrence of moist desquamation was delayed in the N. sativa gel group compared with the placebo group (37 vs. 33 days, p = 0.01). The mean score of the worst pain that patients experienced in the placebo group was significantly higher than that of the N. sativa gel group at week 3 (2.5 ± 0.5 vs. 1.2 ± 0.3, p < 0.05). Nonetheless, the application of N. sativa gel had no significant effect on the SRQOL of patients at any week., Conclusion: N. sativa extract significantly decreases the severity of ARD and delays the onset of moist desquamation in breast cancer patients., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Pluripotent cells were first derived from mouse blastocysts several decades ago. Since then, our knowledge of the molecular events that occur in the pre-implantation embryo has been vastly progressing. The emergence of epigenetics has revolutionized stem cell and developmental biology and further deepened our understanding of the underlying molecular mechanisms controlling the early embryo development. In particular, the emergence of massive parallel sequencing technologies has opened new avenues and became indispensable tools in modern biology. Additionally, development of new and exciting techniques for genome manipulation (TALEN and CRISPR/Cas9) and in vivo imaging provide unique opportunities to perturb and trace biological systems at very high resolution. Finally, recent single-cell - omics combined with sophisticated computational methodologies allow accurate, quantitative measurements for deconvolution of cellular variation in complex cell populations. Collectively, these achievements enabled the detailed characterization and monitoring of various cell states and trajectories during early stages of embryonic development. Here we review recent studies of the transcriptional and epigenetic changes during very early stages of mouse embryo development and compare these with pluripotent cells grown in vitro under different culture conditions. We discuss whether the in vitro cell states have an 'epi-phenocopy' in the embryo and refine our understanding of the circuitries controlling pluripotency and lineage commitment during early stages of mouse development., (Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

This study examined the effect of freezing rate (-10 °C, -15 °C, -20 °C, -30 °C, and -40 °C/min) on motility parameters, rates of fertilization and hatching, ATP content, and indices of oxidative stress including thiobarbituric acid reactive substances and carbonyl derivatives of proteins in Persian sturgeon (Acipenser persicus) sperm. After sampling, sperm was diluted in an extender composed of 23.4-mM sucrose, 0.25-mM KCl, and 30-mM Tris-HCl, pH 8.0, containing 10% methanol and subsequently frozen in a programmable freezer. For postthaw sperm that were frozen at a rate of -40 °C/min, sperm motile duration (134 ± 27.01 seconds), sperm motile percent (60 ± 4.1%), fertilizability (72 ± 8.36% for fertilization rate and 65 ± 7.58% for hatching rate), and ATP content (4.8 ± 0.57 nmol/10(8) sperm) were significantly higher than for sperm frozen at any of the four slower rates (P < 0.05). Moreover, sperm cryopreserved using the fastest freezing rate had significantly lower levels of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (0.5 ± 0.05 nmol/10(8) sperm) and carbonyl derivatives of proteins (41.3 ± 4.9 nmol/10(8) sperm) than sperm cryopreserved using all other freezing rates (P < 0.05). In addition, there is a significant difference (P < 0.05) between fresh sperm and the recovery of cryopreserved Persian sturgeon sperm using programmable freezing with -40 °C/min being the optimal freezing rate among those tested., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Cobalt hydroxide nanoparticles were prepared onto a carbon ceramic electrode (CHN|CCE) using the cyclic voltammetry (CV) technique. The modified electrode was characterized by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. The results showed that CHN with a single-layer structure was uniformly electrodeposited on the surface of CCE. The electrocatalytic activity of the modified electrode toward the oxidation of insulin was studied by CV. CHN|CCE was also used in a homemade flow injection analysis system for insulin determination. The limit of detection (signal/noise [S/N] = 3) and sensitivity were found to be 0.11 nM and 11.8 nA/nM, respectively. Moreover, the sensor was used for detection of insulin in human serum samples. This sensor showed attractive properties such as high stability, reproducibility, and high selectivity., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

A novel and efficient digestion method based on choline chloride-oxalic acid (ChCl-Ox) deep eutectic solvent (DES) was developed for flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS) determination of Cu, Zn, and Fe in biological fish samples. Key parameters that influence analyte recovery were investigated and optimized, using the fish protein certified reference material (CRM, DORM-3) throughout the procedure. In this method, 100 mg of the sample was dissolved in ChCl-Ox (1:2, molar ratio) at 100°C for 45 min. Then, 5.0 mL HNO(3) (1.0 M) was added. After centrifugation, the supernatant solution was filtered, diluted to a known volume, and analyzed by FAAS. Under optimized conditions, an excellent agreement between the obtained results and the certified values was observed, using Student's t-test (P=0.05); the extraction recovery of the all elements was greater than 95.3%. The proposed method was successfully applied to the determination of analytes in different tissues (muscle, liver, and gills) having a broad concentration range in a marine fish sample. The reproducibility of the method was validated by analyzing all samples by our method in a different laboratory, using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). For comparison, a conventional acid digestion (CAD) method was also used for the determination of analytes in all studied samples. The simplicity of the proposed experimental procedure, high extraction efficiency, short analysis time, lack of concentrated acids and oxidizing agents, and the use of safe and inexpensive components demonstrate the high potential of ChCl-Ox (1:2) for routine trace metal analysis in biological samples., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: Radiopharmaceuticals have been widely used as nuclear tracers for myocardial perfusion imaging. The purpose of this study was to investigate the radioprotective effects of hesperidin as a flavonoid which protects against the genotoxic effects of (99m)Tc-MIBI in human cultured lymphocytes., Methods: Whole blood samples from human volunteers were incubated with hesperidin at doses of 10, 50 and 100 micromol. After 1 h of incubation, the lymphocytes were incubated with (99m)Tc-MIBI (200 microCi/2 ml) for 3 h. The lymphocyte cultures were then mitogenically stimulated to allow for evaluation of the number of micronuclei in cytokinesis-blocked binucleated cells., Results: Incubation of lymphocytes with (99m)Tc-MIBI at this high dose induces additional genotoxicity and shown by increases in micronuclei frequency in human lymphocytes. Hesperidin at these doses significantly reduced the micronuclei frequency in cultured lymphocytes. The maximum protective effect and greatest decrease in micronuclei frequency occurred when cultures were incubated with a 100-micromol dose of 65% hesperidin., Conclusion: This study has important implications for patients undergoing nuclear medicine procedures. The results indicate a protective role for hesperidin against the genetic damage and side effects induced by radiopharmaceutical administration.

This work describes a new electrochemical sensor for hydrogen peroxide based on tin pentacyanonitrosylferrate (SnPCNF)-modified carbon ceramic electrode (CCE). The modified electrode was constructed by using a sol-gel technique involving two steps: construction of CCE containing metallic tin (Sn) powder and then electrochemical creation of SnPCNF film on the surface of CCE. The modified electrode was characterized by energy-dispersive X-ray, Fourier transform infrared, scanning electron microscopy, and cyclic voltammetry (CV) techniques. The charge transfer coefficient (alpha) and charge transfer rate constant (k(s)) for the modifying film were calculated. The electrocatalytic activity of the modified electrode toward the reduction of hydrogen peroxide was studied by CV and chronoamperometry. A linear calibration curve was obtained over the hydrogen peroxide concentration range of 0.5 to 69.4 microM using a hydrodynamic amperometric technique. The limit of detection (for a signal-to-noise ratio of 3) and sensitivity were found to be 92 nM and 0.89 microA/microM, respectively. Furthermore, the diffusion coefficient of hydrogen peroxide (D) and catalytic rate constant (k(cat)) were calculated.